Counties should control hours

By KEVIN LOWRY
Wayne County
Young DemocratsPublished: September 4, 2012 4:00AM

It is a fundamental obligation of our government to make voting fair and accessible to all eligible voters. The Secretary of State (SoS), John Husted, has created inequalities and limited accessibility to large blocks of the voting public when directing all 88 counties to have uniform early voting hours. He has also taken it further by firing local Board of Election officials who disagreed with his directive in the better interest of their communities.

Early voting allows everyone, regardless of party affiliation, age, gender and social-economic status the opportunity to cast an actual ballot, in person prior to the day of election. Since Election Day is not a national holiday, there are many people who are not able to vote on Election Day and would prefer to vote in-person rather then submit a paper, absentee ballot. In addition, early voting also reduces the wait time and long hours at polling places on Election Day.

Why is the SoS's directive of uniform hours unfair to Ohio voters? Expecting counties like Wayne and Cuyahoga to serve their very different populations in the same way is absurd. That is why we have we have individual boards of elections to administer the SoS's directives to best serve their population and to provide accessibility and to provide free and fair elections.

Why is the SoS's directive to have limited late night voting hours and no weekend hours unfair to Ohio voters? This directive is unfair because it reduces the accessibility to vote during non-traditional business hours. Much like those who cannot vote on Election Day, people who work cannot get to an early voting location during traditional business hours.

The right to vote should not be a partisan issue. By making early voting inaccessible you are reducing the opportunity for eligible voters to cast their ballots.

In 2008 early voting made up a significant portion of the vote in Ohio, approximately 30 percent. In Wayne County, of the 52,894 more than one in 10 voters cast their ballot early. 5,773 people voted during the 35 day early voting period in Wayne County. 604 people voted during the last three days of early voting. Almost 6,000 votes in a county that had almost 60,000 people turn out for the last presidential election, is a lot of voters to limit their accessibility to the form of voting.

It doesn't matter how you vote. This is not a Democratic or Republican issue. This issue drills down to the core of our freedom and our democracy. Everyone who is eligible should be allowed to cast their vote. Early voting is one program that provides accessibility to the public. The government's responsibility is to provide free and fair elections. By limiting accessibility the SoS is creating an atmosphere of inequality and confusion for the citizens of Ohio. Early voting should be left to local Boards of Elections to determine what is best for the voting public in their counties.